Shiomi's hunch and Morgan's judgment were both spot on.
The haunted Western-style mansion in the forest southwest of the Fuyuki Church was indeed Bazett and Lancer's base.
And the one who launched the attack against them was Caster—Solomon, the King of Magecraft.
Though it was technically an assault, it was more accurate to call it a direct and open engagement. At his Master Marisbury's suggestion, Caster made no effort to conceal himself. He simply entered the forest head-on and located their stronghold.
He didn't need any reconnaissance—his Clairvoyance alone was enough to pinpoint their hideout.
"Tch. He may look like a Caster, but there's no way he's just some regular Magus!"
The wind howled, turning the area around the mansion into a wreck.
Lancer charged across the battlefield, roaring as he launched his attacks at Caster.
But Caster's Magecraft gave him no opening to exploit. Offensive spells fired in rapid succession without even a chant. Defensive barriers blocked every thrust of the crimson spear, no matter how hard he tried to pierce them.
The battle had already dragged on for nearly ten minutes.
Caster remained completely unscathed, while Lancer was left bruised and battered, his injuries all inflicted by a barrage of spells.
Even on such uneven, debris-strewn terrain, the blue-clad Caster moved as though walking on flat ground. Meanwhile, he never budged from his position, giving Lancer no chance to find an opening.
Only now did Lancer understand—understand why that guy, his junior, had chosen to retreat the moment he first laid eyes on Caster, rather than join forces with him and Bazett to mount a counterattack.
This wasn't an opponent you could defeat by sheer effort or recklessness.
"Should've asked that guy more... A Magus whose True Name we don't even know—he's more troublesome than my own master," Lancer muttered, retreating to the clearing in front of the mansion's main entrance as he watched Caster slowly approach.
"Lancer!"
Bazett called out from behind.
Though her wounds hadn't fully healed, she could at least move around—but if she joined the fight, she'd only be a burden.
Not that Lancer was doing much better.
His entire body was covered in wounds.
"Stay back, Bazett," Lancer said, sweat running down his face. "This isn't a battle you can jump into. If you use Magecraft carelessly, you'll die."
He still vividly remembered that battle from the evening before. Shiomi had unleashed three Grand Magecraft spells in an instant—every single one had been dispelled by Caster with ease.
This guy was the nemesis of Magi.
A Magus above all others of this era, a legend—a hero whose name was etched into history.
Lancer couldn't recall exactly who it was, but he felt he was just a breath away from figuring it out.
A cold gust swept through the battlefield.
Caster's cloak fluttered gently in the wind.
To this point, he hadn't even raised his hands—kept hidden beneath his robe.
And yet, Lancer didn't feel belittled or disrespected. He understood—Caster hadn't gone all out. That's the only reason the fight had lasted this long.
Then, a sound stirred from somewhere in the forest, catching Caster's attention. The faint smile on his face gave way to a look of mild surprise.
Lancer noticed it too, but he had no time to investigate.
Instead, he seized the opportunity—charging in and thrusting his crimson spear straight at Caster's body.
At Lancer's speed, it would take less than a second to strike this mysterious Magus.
But a surge of icy blue air erupted from Caster, freezing everything it touched, swirling like a raging ice dragon.
The dragon's body continued to extend, gaining speed with each second, as if it had just burst from the earth, aiming to engulf Lancer's spear entirely.
"I've seen this Magecraft before!"
Lancer remained unfazed. He spun the crimson spear swiftly in his hand, rotating it inside the ice dragon's body. With massive mana pouring into it, the spear drilled outward, slowly forcing the interior open from within.
This was a countermeasure he had devised after fighting Shiomi—crafted specifically to respond to such Magecraft.
It wasn't exactly as expected, but it worked.
The ice dragon let out a roar of bitter cold, unleashing a blizzard that could freeze a person solid, then spat out the crimson spear along with a surge of snow.
"Urgh!"
Caught off guard, Lancer cried out as he was thrown back violently.
Bazett ducked behind a pillar.
The storm of ice swept across the entire mansion. When it finally settled, the entire clearing in front of the building was frozen solid, with the ice dragon's path marking the boundary. Every glass window on the mansion's front had shattered.
Without her mana shielding her, Bazett would've been frozen right along with it all.
Lancer let out a grunt and flicked his spear. The ice covering him cracked and flaked away like a broken shell. His eyes widened, veins bulging at the sides of his temples.
As the Child of Light, Cú Chulainn understood—this battle could only end in life or death.
Either he would defeat Caster here, or he and his Master would fall together.
And someone would have to come retrieve their corpses afterward.
"Come to think of it, your Master's not here," Lancer said offhandedly.
Caster's expression didn't change; he merely shook his head.
"There's no need for him to be on the front lines. I can handle this. He and I share the same view," Caster replied calmly.
"Is that so? That's a shame," Lancer muttered as he slowly crouched into position.
Although he'd been on the back foot the entire time, perhaps because Caster had shown no aggressive intent, the enemy still stood at a distance—just at the edge of the clearing, where the forest began.
Roughly a hundred meters away.
In a single breath, Lancer cut the distance in half, then launched himself skyward, narrowly avoiding the ice dragon that charged in once more.
He had received permission to use his Noble Phantasm.
A one-on-one fight clearly wasn't going to work. That left only one option.
"Bite down—Soaring Spear That Strikes with Death! Gae Bolg!"
Pouring all his mana into it, he hurled the spear—its true form of attack.
The moment it left his hand, the magic spear twisted and writhed like a mass of thorns. The spearhead branched out into warped shafts, each spawning their own pointed tips.
The ice dragon coiled protectively around Caster, forming a towering barricade.
But Gae Bolg transformed into a dense net of barbed spears, enveloping the entire area around Caster and the ice dragon, unleashing a shockwave that made the forest tremble.
Landing back on the ground, Lancer caught the returning spear as it flew back into his hand after the explosion. He clicked his tongue in frustration.
The ice dragon had been annihilated—yet Caster stood completely unharmed.
Beneath the icy remains, several immense black shadows had shielded him.
As the smoke cleared, those shadows gradually faded, leaving behind a single figure kneeling beside Caster.
"My king, the demon gods stationed in the forest couldn't stop the two intruders."
"I see. Then let's end this quickly. That's what the Master wants as well."
Caster let out a quiet sigh—another spell was already primed.
"You bastard…"
Cú Chulainn stared at the magic circle, muttering in disbelief.
...
(100 Chapters Ahead)
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